The Martin Scorcese film, Hugo, belly flopped at the box office in 2011, which probably explains why I hadn’t heard much about it– pretty unusual for a Scorcese flick. But boy, am I glad I gave this one a second chance. For anyone else that eats, sleeps and breathes all things Paris, this movie is packed with sumptuous visuals from a 1930s city of light.
Some might consider it a kids film, but I simply lost myself in Hugo‘s rich colours, the artwork, set design, the costumes and all the wonderful little details that brought 1930s Paris to life on screen. Based on the true life story of George Méliès, a pioneering French filmmaker who tragically lost so much of his work during the war when his films were melted down for silver content and to make boot heels for shoes, the film is an ode to a re-discovered legend of cinematic history. We find Méliès, forgotten and broken, destined to make a meager living as a candy and toy salesman at the Montparnasse station in Paris, until he meets a young and curious orphan by the name of Hugo…
Doesn’t it just sound like perfect material for Messy Nessy Chic?! It may have bombed at the box office, but I have a sneaky feeling Marty made this film just for MNC readers (although he may be a couple million bucks short after this one).
Recognise this reference?! In a dream sequence, the film, which is set largely in a train station, replicates the famous October 1895 Granville-Paris Express wreck at the Gare Montparnasse (pictured left). The engine careened across almost 98 ft of the station concourse, crashed through a 2 foot thick wall, shot across a terrace and sailed out of the station, plummeting onto the Place de Rennes 33 ft below, where it stood on its nose.
Hugo is available to rent/ buy now on iTunes
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